Day: May 29, 2022

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SAUDIA Chooses King Abdullah Economic City as Home to its Digital Transformation and Services Departments

Jeddah– Saudi Arabian Airlines (SAUDIA) has made King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) the new home of several digital transformation-related divisions within the company, along with a host of new departments formed to meet the corporation’s rapidly growing needs. The company’s new divisional location can accommodate 1,000 employees. This strategic step will see SAUDIA capitalizing on the many benefits of KAEC’s advanced infrastructure to further enhance its overall performance.

The new division headquarters, located in KAEC’s business building (Bay Views), was formally inaugurated by His Excellency the Director General of the SAUDIA Group, Eng. Ibrahim bin Abdulrahman Al-Omar, in the presence of Mr. Cyril Piaia, CEO of Emaar the Economic City, Mr. Mazen Al Saleh, The Vice Secretary General of The Economic Cities and Special Zones Authority (ECZA) and senior executives from all parties.

Under SAUDIA and KAEC’s strategic cooperation agreement, the Bay La Sun district workplace will be dedicated to IT, data analysis, and guest services sector employees.

“We are pleased to have SAUDIA as the newest members of KAEC’s business and investment community and look forward to welcoming its employees to their new offices and homes. SAUDIA is one of many prestigious national and international companies that have chosen the city as a major center for their business,” Cyril Piaia, CEO of King Abdullah Economic City commented. “We will continue to cement KAEC’s position as the Red Sea coast’s premier business and investment hub and Vision 2030 realization platform”, he added.

KAEC is constantly seeking to develop its business environment and attract more quality investments, both locally and globally. The signing of this agreement with one of Saudi Arabia’s leading companies represents a major milestone in KAEC’s journey towards becoming a multifaceted economic power that will play a major role in helping realize the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 objectives.

His Excellency Eng. Ibrahim Al-Omar, expressing his views in the decision to move several strategic SAUDIA sectors to the city, said: “We aim to derive every benefit and advantage from KAEC’s advanced, one-of-a-kind infrastructure which will enhance our sectors’ overall operations and bring us one step closer to achieving our national aviation strategy objectives. This new optimized work environment with state-of-the-art technological developments will facilitate SAUDIA’s progress towards achieving its Vision 2030 goals.”

ECZA’s Vice Secretary-General for Economic Cities, Mazen Al Saleh, said: “SAUDIA’s decision to select KAEC as the base for a number of its sectors comes as a culmination of the city’s efforts to attract value-added strategic partnerships, one of its key Vision 2030 objectives. We at the Economic Cities & Special Zones Authority reaffirm our commitment to helping create an attractive regulatory environment with a range of incentives and competitive capabilities that directly benefit each economic city’s strategic sectors.”

With the Public Investment Fund (PIF) emerging as a major development partner, KAEC is currently experiencing a major strategic transformation. KAEC’s new strategy is allowing the city to explore new sustainable development solutions which aim to benefit to the community. KAEC is a Vision realization platform, offering state-of-the-art infrastructure, ready to welcome 3rd party developers, 3rd party investors, 3rd party operators, as well as all key strategic programs from Vision 2030. This transformation will enable KAEC to consolidate its position as an integrated investment platform, benefiting from great connectivity (port, rail) in a strategic location along the Red Sea coast. Thanks to its new partnerships with public and private sector, KAEC is being widely recognized as an urban hub for investment and modern lifestyle.

KAEC, in its bid to attract major corporations and business leaders, relies on the many advantages provided by its Economic Cities and Special Zones Authority (ECZA). Companies operating in KAEC enjoy access to every governmental service under one roof, in addition to governmental financial and regulatory incentives provided by ECZA and partnering government bodies. This comes as part of the ECZA’S efforts to offer an attractive regulatory environment for investment, supported by competitive incentives and capabilities that contribute to the localization of national capital. These offerings are all expected to help diversify sources of income and provide quality jobs for the Saudi youth.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

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DR Congo halts Rwanda flights over alleged support for rebels

KINSHASA— The Democratic Republic of Congo suspended RwandAir flights to the country, accusing Rwanda’s government of supporting the M23 rebel group that has renewed its offensive near their shared border.

The government in Kinshasa also summoned Rwanda’s ambassador to express its disapproval of its neighbor’s “recidivist attitude.”

The decision was announced after an extraordinary national security meeting on Friday chaired by Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi.

RwandAir, the flag carrier of Rwanda, said in a statement it would cancel “with immediate effect” all flights to Kinshasa, Lubumbashi and Goma.

Kinshasa said it was responding to a fresh campaign of violence by M23 in the east of the country which began last month, after nearly a decade of relative calm.

Last week, the group advanced as close as 20 kilometers (12 miles) to the main eastern Congolese city of Goma and briefly captured the army’s largest base in the area.

The Congolese government has said it found military equipment that was allegedly supplied by Rwanda, along with testimonies from local residents and soldiers suggesting a link between M23 and its neighbor.

“A warning was made to the Rwandans, whose attitude is likely to disrupt the peace process … where all the armed groups, except for the M23, are committed to the path to peace,” Communications Minister Patrick Muyaya said.

Muyaya said the government had designated M23 a terrorist group and would exclude it from peace talks being held in Kenya with militia groups active in eastern DRC.

Kinshasa also accuses Kigali of scuppering the peace process being mediated by Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, who holds the rotating presidency of the East African Community group.

Rwanda denies supporting the rebels and relations between the two countries have nosedived over the past month.

Rwanda on Saturday accused DRC of backing another rebel group that captured two of its soldiers along the shared border this week.

The M23 movement is made up of former Congolese army soldiers who formed a rebel group in 2012.

Primarily a Congolese Tutsi group, M23 is one of more than 120 armed militia operating in eastern DRC, many of which are a legacy of regional wars more than two decades ago.

The United States says many of the rebel groups are keen to control the country’s valuable natural resources, as the DRC has major deposits of copper, cobalt, gold and diamonds.

M23’s last rebellion was defeated by the Congolese army in 2013 after the rebel group briefly captured the provincial capital Goma a few months earlier.

During M23’s last assault, Congolese and United Nations investigators had also accused Rwanda of supporting the group.

When the rebels resumed their fighting this month, they accused the Congolese government of failing to respect a 2009 agreement under which its fighters were to be incorporated into the army.

Recent clashes between the military and M23 rebels in eastern DRC have displaced 72,000 people, the UN said.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK